Texas Hunting Forum

Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots

Posted By: 7mag

Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/07/15 11:05 PM

So.............yeah I youtubed it lol Seems like this is the easiest, most cost effective way for sighting in. Don't even need a bore sighter etc. Basically put the target out, pull the bolt out (if bolt action, if not proceed to step 2). Once thats done line up the scope on target and make adjustments.

First shot should be on paper. Next 2 are for fine tuning. I havent tried it so don't shoot the messenger. Your thoughts? What worries me is what about those 100 yards, 125 yard shots etc? Hold over or???????

interesting article on POI at 25 and why it works...........
http://hunting.about.com/od/guns/f/whysightat25.htm
Posted By: Nogalus Prairie

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/07/15 11:09 PM

Can start there to get on paper but need to finish at 100. 3" high will have you in kill zone to almost 300 with most common calibers.

Everybody has different preferences on the 0", 1", 2", 3" thing.....
Posted By: HicksHunter

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/07/15 11:12 PM

I just boresight and go to town. A quick boresight is usually all that's needed to get on paper. You should be able to be zeroed at 100 yards in 5 shots if you're a good shot and your scope adjustments are on.

Take the shots at 25 if you want to, but certainly don't neglect shooting your rifle at 100 yards. 1/2 inch off becomes 2 inches, and you may not know how much you should holdover vertically at 100 yards.
Posted By: BigPig

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/07/15 11:17 PM

popcorn
Posted By: ChadTRG42

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/07/15 11:58 PM

25 yards will get you on paper at 100 yards. But I sure would not use 25 yards ONLY to sight in my rifle. If you do only use 25 yards, you better understand sight height/bore height alignment, and your trajectory really good. But if you know those already, you'd sight in at 100.

There was a thread a few months ago with a shooter who used the 25 yard method. He didn't understand why he was so far off at 100 yards. A lesson in scope and bore sight height alignment showed why he was off. I wouldn't recommend it.

I saw a guy having trouble sighting a 30-06 once when at a public range, and he had already gone through almost 2 boxes of ammo, and only had a few rounds left for his hunt. I told him all I needed was 1 round, and he didn't believe me. So I bet him and made 1 good shot on a clean target. I went to my MOA reticle in my Nightforce scope and measured how far over and up or down he needed. I made the corrections on his scope, and said you should be good now. He didn't believe me until he shot the bullseye on the first round. He packed up and left with about 3-4 rounds for his hunt.
Posted By: Tommar

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 12:02 AM

The Army has been zeroing at 25 meters for years.
Posted By: ChadTRG42

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 12:05 AM

Originally Posted By: Tommar
The Army has been zeroing at 25 meters for years.


Yes, they have, but that's a little different. The weapon platform and scope/bore height has not changed on any of their rifles, so it's easier to do. But someone who doesn't understand this, should not be sighting in at 25.
Posted By: Texas buckeye

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 12:09 AM

There is a difference in zeroing for bullseye vs moment of human.....

When I qual'd in the af we shot at targets that simulated distance....hitting a Small silhouette at 25 yards (or maybe it was 50 yards, I can't remember but it seems it was longer than 25) to simulate the 400 yard shot is a whole lot easier than actually hitting the 400 yard target, if for anything but just wind hold over.

Zero for where you plan to Shoot. If your shots will be at 25
Yards then zero at 25, but I Prefer to zero for 100 and hold a little high for 25...
Posted By: charlesb

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 12:15 AM

This is where the difference between the newer scopes and older scopes show up, like night and day.

Every now and then someone will show up with a Mauser or Mannlicher-Schonauer put together in the 50's or 60's that will have an almost pre-historic scope on it, and want me to get it sighted in for them with their ammo. The old scopes do not behave anything like what we have today, but if you are comfortable around the old mechanisms with no clicks to go by, and slack that requires you to adjust a distance beyond what you want, and then go back to eliminate the slack, it is possible to get them sighted-in OK.

Eventually. wink

The good part about working with these old classics is a lot like the good part with my boots. - The part where you take them off!

It really enhances my appreciation of modern glass.
Posted By: 68A

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 12:27 AM

Originally Posted By: Tommar
The Army has been zeroing at 25 meters for years.


Whole different ballgame, 300 meter target is the size of your upper torso. Anywhere on the target is a hit. In some instances hitting dirt in front of the target would activate it and the cpu would score it as a hit.
Posted By: Regular Guy

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 12:54 AM

The 25 meter zero is a bad idea, in my opinion. According to Army standard, you "BZO" irons at 25 and that should be good to 300. You zero your reflex sight 1.5 cm low at 25 meters, and that shouldhave you dead on at 100. You zero your 300 meter aim point on the ACOG at 25 meters, and it should be good to 300- as well as the 100 aim point good to 100. By the standard, you are supposed to confirm at 100 meters except for the BZO or battle zero. The BZO gives you a good enough zero on the battlefield, and it is by no means meant to be a subtitute for a precise 100 meter zero.

The sight height on a service rifle is about 3", so the angle of the barrel and therefore the rise of the bullet is pretty significant. Still, you normally just get your 25 meter zero and go qualify. I have seen dudes zero at 25 and hit almost 2 feet high at 100. Aiming at the burm beneath the man-sized popup to guarantee a hit at certain distances. Not to mention, we aim at a man sized target and a hit is a score. For a hunter, you have to hit about a 6" circle to "score".

A bolt action rifle is not hard to bore sight at 100. You pull the bolt and set the rifle up on bags, and center the target to the bore as you look through it. Carefully adjust your crosshairs to the center of the target while maintaining the sight picture looking down the bore, and the first shot will be on paper if you are careful and you take your time. Otherwise, you can zero about a half inch low at 25 then stretch it out to 100 to dial it in, and you'll still be close.

I wouldn't dare zero at 25 on a hunting rifle, without confirming at 100.
Posted By: jhenderson

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 12:55 AM

This is how I've done the last two from scratch. Set up a target at 100 yards. Pull the bolt. Look down barrel and scope and line up best you can. Last two I've done this way have been within an inch before I even fire a shot.
Posted By: Texas Dan

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 01:30 AM

No reason why it could not be done if you know the ballistics of the load. But of course, the best way to confirm the ballistics is to shoot at a more distant target.
Posted By: charlesb

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 01:52 AM

Another consideration when comparing a 25 yard zero and a 100 yard zero is the height of the scope's center above the center of the bore. - This can vary quite a bit between guns. It also makes a difference when the gun is canted, angled to one side or the other when firing. The higher the scope is mounted, the more a bit of cant will affect things.

I always prefer to mount a scope low, even if I get a bit more mirage from a warm barrel.

Often with a new scope installation, I will get it on the paper and zeroed at 25 yards, then move to 100 yards to set the final zero, at the proper distance above the center of the bull to take best advantage of the load's point-blank range characteristics.

The thing to remember when shooting at 25 yards with a scope that has 1/4" of movement per click at 100 yards, is that four clicks moves the point of impact one inch at 100 yards, so you must multiply that by four at 25 yards. Sixteen clicks will move the point of impact one inch at 25 yards with that same scope. (25x4=100)
Posted By: SapperTitan

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 02:32 AM

1.5 inches low at 25 yards with Aimpoint PRO gets you dang close to dead on at 100 yds.
Posted By: Texas buckeye

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 02:58 AM

Originally Posted By: SapperTitan
1.5 inches low at 25 yards with Aimpoint PRO gets you dang close to dead on at 100 yds.


Of course this is very scope and rifle dependent. My AR has a very high rail so I would be higher than 1.5 inches, but a bolt rifle will likely be closer to the 1.5. All depends on bore to mid-scope height differential, and I know a lot of night vision gear sits higher as the scopes are bigger than normal scopes.

Important thing to do is get to know what you use, and become comfortable with your gear...

This is my rifle, there are many like it but this is mine...
Posted By: TFF Caribou

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 03:06 AM

I feel like a guy who insists on only sighting in at 25 isn't confident in his ability to shoot well at 100. And that guy shouldn't be hunting if that's the case. Zero, or at least shoot at the distance you plan to hunt so you know what the bullet will do.

Last rifle I got 2 shots dead on touching at dead center of the bullseye. Then I went to dial it in at 100, and it was around 6" high and 5" left on a 3 shot group
Posted By: maximum

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 03:22 AM

nobody should ever sight at 25 yards and
call it done if they have any intention
of going hunting with that firearm. at
least shoot several targets at 100 yards
before going afield to hunt. that's the
only ethical thing to do.
Posted By: TexasVine

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 03:24 AM

I have always zeroed in at my "zero" distance regardless. I want to be certain and see proof that things are what they should be. Why take the risk?
Posted By: charlesb

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/08/15 11:52 AM

Originally Posted By: Tff caribou
I feel like a guy who insists on only sighting in at 25 isn't confident in his ability to shoot well at 100.


There's that, for sure.

I would not be surprised to discover that a lot of these guys are simply too lazy or in too big a hurry to walk out 100 yards with a target, and later on go out and retrieve it.

- And there are others who must shoot at a crowded public range, where waiting to go down-range to get targets is time-consuming, and more than a little scary after witnessing how flaky some of their fellow shooters may appear to be.

I'm so lazy and worthless that it's worth the investment for me to use a private range, and in most cases just drive out with my van to deal with the targets. (Heart issues)
Posted By: TexasEd

Re: Sighting in at 25 yards w/3 shots - 12/09/15 09:51 PM

Originally Posted By: maximum
nobody should ever sight at 25 yards and
call it done if they have any intention
of going hunting with that firearm. at
least shoot several targets at 100 yards
before going afield to hunt. that's the
only ethical thing to do.


Agreed.

Always shoot the distances you will be hunting at and know what your particular combination of cartridge, scope and rifle will do at each of those ranges. Not to mention the ability of the shooter.
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